It was a complete fluke. C'mon, Dave Zazzaro beating me in a
Division III pick 'em contest? Get serious.

Sadly, that's what happened last year in "Competing the Z,"
where the former Colby and Colorado College head coach went
head-to-head with me each week to pick winners of select NCAA
Division III men's lacrosse games. Zazzaro crushed me like a grape,
pulling wins out of a hat pretty much all year. Heck, he even rode
his former team, Colorado College, for a bunch of ridiculous wins
(Check my archives
for a postmortem).

So what was Z's reward for giving me the business? I cut him
loose.

My pick 'em ego is as big as they get, and I can't stand for some
Drew University graduate infringing on my elite NESCAC status.

I first met Joel in person last Memorial Day in Baltimore for the
NCAA championships. He has the quasi-urban gravitas of someone who
grew up in a plush section of Washington, D.C., combined with a
starry-eyed perspective of a youngster indoctrinated by an
uber-liberal arts institution such as Haverford.

In short, he was the perfect mark.

But I don't want to completely spoil the surprise. I'll let Joel
give you a taste of what is to come this spring:

CENSER: Thanks Jac. I'm thrilled to be a part of this year's
pick 'em contest. I'll skip the part here where I take potshots at
you for "watching" games from your office in Wisconsin, or flex my
Centennial Conference bonafides. Instead, I'll channel my best
Crash Davis Bull Durham impression to give everyone some
idea about what I "believe" D-III lacrosse is all about. (Last time
I checked though, Jac bears little resemblance to a sultry Susan
Sarandon).

"I believe in high pressure defense, quality post-game spreads,
Max Hjelm's lefty rip, Richie Ford's through-the-legs shot, D.J.
Hessler's vision and that Roanoke's Chris Keating and Jon Mason
were the best offensive players I ever played against. I believe
Stevenson's roster is too big, Swarthmore's too small, and that
Geneseo can't get a turf field fast enough. I believe there ought
to be a constitutional amendment outlawing leggings, the Pool B,
and starting practice any earlier than Feb. 1. Not to mention the
whole DI vs. DIII debate. Finally, I believe that the Centennial is
always the top conference (even when the all evidence points to the
contrary)."

Onto the games...

No. 3 Stevenson (0-0) at No. 7 Haverford (0-0) – 1 p.m.,
SaturdayCOYNE: Joel's blind spot all season is obviously going to
be his alma mater, Haverford. You can bet he'll choose the Black
Squirrels in every game that pops up on the schedule, which will
happen with some frequency, I'm guessing. That's not necessarily a
bad thing, as the Fords should be a very good team this season.

His allegiance will hurt him in this game, however. The Squirrels
have jumped out to slow starts the last two seasons. In '09, it was
Cabrini putting a 15-3 beatdown on Haverford, and then last year,
Colin Bathory's squad started the season 5-5 before catching fire
down the stretch. So opening the season with Stevenson – even
at home – will not end well.

As odd as it sounds, I think the Stevenson attack will be more
dangerous without Steve Kazimer. Instead of the ball being
swallowed on certain possessions, Jimmy Dailey and Richie Ford will
be able to create a bit more. That's going to cause problems for a
youngish Haverford backline, even with the imposing presence of Joe
Banno in net. I don't think it will be indicative of their season,
but Haverford is going to get stampeded by the Mustangs, 14-5.

CENSER: Look, Jac can talk about history all he wants,
but this game is going to come down to faceoffs. Stevenson's Ray
Witte (63 percent) is a workhorse, and UVA longpole transfer Kyle
Menendez will be a major force on the wings. Not good news for a
Ford squad that struggled at the "X" last year. Still, my guess is
the Squirrels will win enough of them, and can beat Stevenson
enough in the half-field (losing the younger Rossi to injury is a
big loss for the Mustangs) to win.

Coyne, from his comfy Wisco' confines, can doubt Haverford's
defense all he wants, but sophomore Scott Chanelli might be the
best 1-on-1 guy in the Centennial. Throw in rangy long stick Dillon
Hamill (second team All-Centennial), steady senior Scott Kelley and
keeper Joe Banno, and I think the Fords can keep the talented
Vill...er...I mean Stevenson attack combo of Ford and Dailey in
check. 11-10, Squirrels.

No. 2 Salisbury (1-0) at No. 10 Lynchburg (0-0) – 1 p.m.,
SaturdayCOYNE: Looking at the score of last year's game between
these two schools, it would appear that Lynchburg acquitted itself
relatively well in the 14-9 loss, but it was really a story of two
halves. Salisbury rocked the Hornets in the first half, leading
12-2 at the break. Lynchburg figured something out at halftime to
make it interesting. If Steve Koudelka can figure out what was
missing, there's the potential for the 'Burg to pull off the upset
at home.

And there's no doubt that the Hornets have the talent to give the
Gulls a run. However, Lynchburg would have been better served with
a complacent Salisbury team entering the game after a championship
run. Unfortunately, Jim Berkman's troops should be hungry and ready
to punish the second contender on the schedule. I like Salisbury by
the same margin as last year, 15-10.

CENSER: The two guys who were playing best for the Gulls
in May (faceoff guy Ryan Finch and LSM Connor Burgasser) both
graduated, and I'll say this up front about Salisbury's defense:
there are no longpoles in the mold of Eric Martin, Jeff Bigas, Kyle
Hartzell, Chris Heier or Chase Caruso patrolling the backline. So
I'm interested to see how things shake up on that side of the
field.

Still, I think Salisbury will beat Lynchburg. Despite the Hornets
having their best team in the post-Cranston era, I can't see them
running and gunning with the Gulls for an entire 60 minutes. I'm
also intrigued by Salisbury attackman Tony Mendes. The former
Maryland/Syracuse stud transfer had a nice debut for the Gulls (two
goals, two assists in a 25-2 rout of Greensboro) and should give a
shot in the arm to a team that had plenty of troubles in half-field
offense by the end of last season. Gulls, 17-11.

No. 5 Roanoke (0-0) at No. 20 St. Mary's (0-0) – 1 p.m.,
SundayCOYNE: St. Mary's has picked up a little buzz heading
into this season, and it's not too hard to see why. The Seahawks
lost only three players off last year's team that finished 10-6 and
played close with Denison (10-7 loss), Dickinson (7-6) and CAC
rival Stevenson (13-10 on the road). It's not unreasonable to think
they might snag an 11th win this spring with a virtually identical
schedule.

But lost in all that is St. Mary's got waxed by Roanoke in the
season opener, 22-7. The game was tied at three with five minutes
left in the first, but the Maroons scored 12 of the next 13 goals.
Goodnight. Conventional wisdom would say the Seahawks are better
and Roanoke will still be searching for some pieces after losing
last year's graduating class. But is there enough to believe there
could be an eight-goal swing? I could see the Seahawks pulling an
upset or two this year, but it's tough to buy in for the season
opener. 'Noke, 14-8.

CENSER: Remember in 2006 when St. Mary's smacked Roanoke
9-5 at the beginning of the season? I have a feeling coach Bill
Pilat and the Maroons might be feeling a little déjà
vu in 2011. First having to rebuild your entire defense is no joke,
and long-time backline staples like Simmons, Love and Dorsey all
have to be replaced. Some patchwork also has to be done on offense,
where finishers like Pat March and Matt Quinton graduated as well.
Finally, the Seahawks are no slouches, and have plenty of talent
returning on both ends of the field. So I'll bet on St. Mary's
holding off Noke in an up-and-down 12-10 slugfest.

Censer's Pick
Wittenberg (0-0) at Washington & Lee (1-0) – 1 p.m.,
SaturdayCENSER: I watched Washington & Lee scrimmage last
Saturday, and saw the kind of team we've come to expect from the
Generals. They don't give up easy goals (Joe LaSala and southpaw
Austin Wernecke are both top-notch, All-American caliber
defenders), they can sting you in transition, and they aren't
particularly explosive on offense.

Wittenberg, under the leadership of former Harvard assistant
George Harris, seems primed for the upset. The Tigers have carved
out a nice role as NCAC upstart and return almost everyone
significant from last year. Still, I'm going conservative here (it
is W&L) and sticking with the Generals, who will be stout
enough on defense to grind out an 8-7 nailbiter.

COYNE: Joel's off to a good start. I like this game.
Wittenberg is fresh off an NCAA appearance, however brief, while
Washington & Lee is still searching for some year-to-year
consistency. One would think they'd meet in the middle, but I don't
think so.

First off, W&L handled the Tigers last year, 10-4, and the
Generals should be better than their '10 version. Second, and
perhaps more importantly, I've always felt W&L coach Gene
McCabe telegraphs the type of team he has with the schedule he puts
together. The fact that he has traded in Birmingham-Southern and
Sewanee from last year's slate for Salisbury and Denison leads me
to believe the Gennies could be a sleeper this year. I like the
Generals comfortably, 12-6.

Coyne's Pick
Carthage (0-0) vs. La Roche (0-0) – 11:30 a.m., Sunday (at
Pontiac, Mich.)COYNE: Hey, it's still early, and there aren't a whole
lot of marquee games out there. Since this will be a way to sneak
in a squad from my (current) home state, we'll give Carthage
(Kenosha, Wis.) a crack at the rundown. The third-year program will
be taking on a start-up, La Roche (Pittsburgh), in a neutral site
game, which at first glance might seem like a mismatch. But I'm not
so sure.

The Redhawks, under the watchful eye of former Robert Morris
assistant Anthony Stamapotoulos, are, by all accounts, off to a
strong recruiting start, including a lot of our friends from North
of the Border. I'm not sure if I'd call it an "upset," per se, but
can La Roche take it to a more established program? I think it
will. Redhawks, 11-10.

CENSER: When's the last time Carthage was in something
competitive? When Hannibal and Scipio were duking it out on
elephants? (Sorry, couldn't pass up the mindless fifth-grade social
studies jab.) But I'll play contrarian and take Carthage 13-10.
This whole Green Bay–Pittsburgh rematch has too many
parallels to a couple weeks ago, where Jac's Cheeseheads reigned
supreme. Wisco' kids by a field goal.